Why this is important to Wisconsin businesses: Due to the ruble's devaluation, many manufacturing firms are exporting into other markets from a Russian base.
Russia’s manufacturing sector attracted most of the foreign direct investment in the country in 2015, as the number of projects with full or partial foreign ownership rose to a record level.
In 2015, 201 new projects were launched with the participation of foreign investors. Western Europe accounted for half of all foreign investment in Russia in 2015, posting growth of 77 percent despite international tensions and sanctions. However, the more than 13,000 jobs created last year with the help of foreign investment still fell short of the 18,000 created in 2014.
Overall, the total number of foreign investment projects in Russia nearly doubled in 2015. Manufacturing led the way with 171 new projects, an 80 percent increase over 2014. However, there was a substantial drop in the amount of investments into Russia's transportation, communication, retail and hospitality industries.
Germany quadrupled its direct investments in 2015, which shows the appeal of the Russian market at a time when the country's assets have depreciated by half due to the ruble devaluation. Many German manufacturing firms began moving production to Russia about three years ago in hopes of exporting from Russia to other markets.